Blessing In Disguise
by VexyJeanetteRaven22-6
Summary: If you think this is another story of how I came back, of my glorious reunion with my ragtag family, you're wrong. It's the story of how I gained not one, but two of my brothers, and how all four of the Wayne boys made a journey unlike any other. And how we were fighting to survive it. An AU story with less-angry Jason Todd and young Damian Wayne, among others.
1. One

I know two things coming back from the dead. First, that it hurts like nothing I have ever experienced. Or that I will, for that matter. The second is that I hate whoever is doing this to me, but I'm uncertain I wanted to stay dead.

It seems, to me at least, like electricity shocking my nerves out. It singes my skin in a way acid would. I decide it is akin to my skeleton being glass and shattering.

My eyes are stuck closed with a moist substance, lashes clumped together too thick to be opened. I'm bare, naked, and cold, despite the heat radiating from whatever liquid it is that surrounds me. It stinks like a sewer.

I want someone to help me, but all I can do is scream. My voice knows no words, however many of them that my mind has been taught. And then, in the midst of the pain and the whirlwind of knowing and not knowing, I'm given the gift of sound.

I recognize the voice, belonging to a man. The accent as thick as a summer storm, the speech pattern, it is definitely Ra's al Ghul. I don't recognize the Arabian speech of the man's cohorts, which are probably just his assassin underlings, but that gives me a clue to my whereabouts. I _really_ don't like things now.

The dialect the immortal's inferiors were using mean that I'm in the middle east somewhere. Ra's would have people speaking the native language if they were somewhere else. I don't like this because this means I can be sure I'm not in the States, and not close to my father. Oh. Bruce isn't my father, not really.

With that thought out, I rip free of whatever is binding me down. I tear my eyes open, but it's hazy. I make my way to an open square that I assume acts as a window, and I fall out. It's many stories, but somehow I'm still alive at the bottom.

I tell myself I will be alright. My body's still bare, save for the strips of bandage over me, which tear off as I run into a forest-like area. As I move, I decide I am afraid. First, of dying, because I'm still on the brink of life. Secondly, getting caught, because I don't want to end up back there and told I'm indebted to the villain. I would have to work for him, which I would hate, however noble he may seem at times.

Another thing I fear is myself. This is due to many things, first and foremost being that I got myself into the mess of getting caught by that clown and getting beaten and then- No. I won't go there, not here and _definitely_ not now.

I'm also afraid because I'm scared to see what the liquid and death and everything have done to me. My hair's thinner, I can feel it, and my skin seems to be a separate entity from my body. I don't want to know what it looks like.

I run because some instinct, somewhere within me, that this is the direction of home. Of the Batcave and the Manor, anyway. I start moving fast and can't stop. Until someone steps out in front of me, throwing a cloth over the rapidly decaying bandages and wrapping me up.

I'm too weak to fight.

"Jason!" I know this voice. Unlike Ra's, I don't recall it from a tape on the computer. This one is from a vivid memory.

"Tal-" I cough out before collapsing. I'm on the ground within seconds, my eyes directed to a star-blanketed sky and the trees between me and those sparkles. The someone moves into my line of sight, but at least I can see clearly now. I won't complain.

She-Talia. Talia al Ghul. She's doing her best to move swiftly and quietly. She wraps me in a robe, and I remember Bruce having one like this once. It was so soft I fell asleep against it once.

She lifts me then, surprising me with her strength. Then I decide it is due to the fact that she is Ra's daughter. He would most definitely have trained her to be so strong. That was also one of the reasons Bruce used to like her, I decide.

When I wake up, I'm in a soft bed. I don't remember falling asleep or how I went from that cold forest to here. I shake my head to get the fuzziness of sleep out and I dare to try sitting up. It comes to me surprisingly easy.

I hear a clicking of heels on hardwood and Talia appears at the doorway to the room, which I haven't bothered to look around at yet. The woman moves close and pulls a wet cloth from a basin at my side, pressing me gently back down. I obey with no other options, still too weak to try fighting.

"Rest, Jason. It will take a long while for you to recover, and I suspect you will want it to be as short as possible." Her tone leaves no argument. I close my eyes again.


	2. Two

After those horrendous hours- was it even more than one? -Talia settles me into a pattern of function. Because she's caring for me herself, I have to wonder what her father thinks. I end up asking her after several rounds of alternating sleep and consciousness into my stay.

She responds by telling me, "Ra's assumed partial responsibility for your death, and brought you back accordingly. He wished for you to become one of his pawns, so that he could bend your father to his will. I made my attempt to free you as soon as possible, sneaking you away, and I brought you here. He assumes you have perished, I do believe."

"So, where is 'here?' Why would you help me out anyway? And what if he finds out?"

"Jason, one question at a time. First, we are in a secluded region of southwestern Asia, though I am not sure what country out of a few. Secondly, I assisted you because I feel that I owe it to your father, if that is what you call him. Lastly, I do not know what if 'he' finds out. I suppose I would have to sneak you out somehow."

"Please figure out a plan," I plead. I don't mean to be whiny but I am just back from the dead and somewhat paranoid. "I mean, it's not like I'm not grateful for your help, 'cause I am. It's just that I want to know I've got something worked out if things go wrong. Street kid logic."

"Ah, yes. Your... messy background."

This is how it goes. One more day followed by a second, and then one more, where I do the same thing. Of course, there are exceptions. The dialogue will change dramatically, depending on the mood one or both of us is in. If she is angry, the conversation is short-lived and sour. If I am sad, it is simple and slow.

However, she does present me with a company I cannot help but be grateful for. This afterlife, or second life, I guess, is highly lonely. I don't have anyone I used to-actually, other than Talia, I don't have anyone at all.

It becomes our routine that she will come into my room in the early morning, just after the sun comes up, and she will pull back the drapes. I will wake and she will help me dress and eat. Then, we will chat until lunch, or almost until. In one of these chats, she mentions that I spend my days in bed because she is trying to heal me enough to get me back home to Bruce.

Somehow, I trust her to be telling the truth.

One day, she presents me with a calendar and a black marker. The days since my resurrection have been marked off already. In the two days since, I've marked Dick, Alfred, and Bruce's birthdays. Now, sitting in the sun from the afternoon-lit window, I am warm and busy, a rarity nowadays.

I am attempting, successfully on the most part, to recall all my old friends' special days. To be more accurate, they are, or were, anyway, Dick's friends that put up with his kid brother. As I am finishing, Talia comes in.

Though she is usually gone after lunch, sometimes the woman will come in to make sure I am resting. In the last few days, I have been a bit more restless, wanting to get up and go places. I assume now is one of those times.

"Those names, are they important to you?" Talia asks. She gestures to the scrawled list in the margin of August. It's an eventful month, for no reason at all. I respond, "Yeah. Old friends and almost-family."

She makes me lie down, proving my assumption correct, and she moves to close the thick curtains. She waits with me until I start to doze off, and the whole time she is humming an Arabian lullaby. The sounds of her childhood, I think.

When I am almost asleep, I hear the chair beside the bed shift a little. The door clicks shut and I am alone, but not unconscious. I lay in the bed and think, a bad idea. Dark things come to mind.

 _What if Bruce doesn't want me back in the manor? Where will I go? What if-no._ When _I return, will Dick and Alfred still love me?_ It occurs to me that I don't have many options, but I finally pass out as I'm starting to get far in thought.

The wild thoughts before I sleep become a part of the routine, as do afternoon naps in addition to my regular night sleeping. Talia and the setting are also constants, making me settle into something I'm not sure is entirely concrete. As if to prove it, things start to change again, although not too drastically this time.


	3. Three

It starts when Talia comes into my room in the early morning, much earlier than usual. I've been with her for nineteen days at this point. I'm used to our unofficial schedule, where lately she's allowed me to move freely about my room. Now, she is telling me, "I need you to promise me you will stay in bed as much as possible, Jason."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"I must make a trip, and though I will most likely be back this time tomorrow, I need you to rest. I do not want you to accidentally, or otherwise, for that matter, get injured."

"Sure, Tal." She rolls her eyes. I know she hates the nickname, so I keep using it. "Jason, this is a very serious matter. If anything-"

"I'll be fine. Look, if it makes you happy, I promise you I won't leave this room. I'll just go over to that bookshelf, get something to read, and stay here. Okay?"

She consents, and makes her leave. I go back to sleep. When I wake, the hour is late morning and one of the servants has left a tray of food on my bedside table. I pick up the wooden platform by its silver handles and set it on my lap, studying the room. Talia didn't change anything, save for the addition of the top shelf being full of books. I can look when I finish breakfast.

On my left, facing into the room, is a huge closet, full of outfits that somehow all fit me. Then there's the antique bookshelf, my creaky old bed, and the ancient-looking door. A simple room with smooth hardwood floors and surprisingly warm stone walls.

When I finish the food, I get up, set the tray just outside the door, and I walk to the shelf. I select one of the new books and an old one, and I sit down on my messy blankets and read.

I spend most of the day reading, and I take a small nap in the late afternoon. I go to sleep only a few hours later, having finished my third book and eaten dinner. When I wake, it is late morning. Talia is not back yet or she would have woken me.

It doesn't matter. I eat my breakfast, again left beside me, and I pick up a book. My reading list ranges from John Green's _Looking for Alaska_ to Rick Riordan's _Lightning Thief_. I like young adult novels, though some of Talia's mythology stories were quite beautiful.

Talia arrives just after I've finished lunch, though long enough after that my tray has vanished from the hallway. She steps into my room looking worn and tired, so I scoot over, inviting her on the bed. She sits with the smallest of sighs escaping her lips.

"Jason, I have news, though I am not sure whether or not you would consider them good or bad."

"Alright," I respond, closing _The Perks of Being a Wallflower_ and looking up to her. She takes a deep breath and explains that almost seven years ago, she and Bruce were deeply in love and by Ra's standards, married. They had a nice life. They had spent a night in the desert where they were happy and she'd conceived a child, though he never found out about the kid. Ra's had taken their child when it was a newborn and she'd only seen it three times in its life.

The first was the day her and Bruce's son was born. She'd named him Damian Wayne. The second was when he was four years old, where she'd spent two weeks with her baby, who Ra's had been training as a soldier. He knew little language, mostly due to Ra's not wanting him to fill his brain with words in favor of attacks and defenses. But right before he'd had to leave her, he'd told her, "Don't be scared for me, Mother. I will come back to you someday."

"Honestly," she tells me, "I just hoped it would not be his body."

The third time was yesterday, when she was able to take him from Ra's and bring him here. He is a seven-year-old descendant of Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul. He is my brother.

"I was hoping you would let him stay with you," she is telling me now. "I realize how sudden this is, but I wish for him to know of the outside world."

"And you want him to be with me in case something bad happens, so he'll have someone to protect him. It's okay. I can... he's my brother, alright? I can do something."

"Thank you, Jason. I highly appreciate it," she says. "I sent him to the bathroom so he could shower. When he is dressed I will bring him here, if that is alright?"

"Yeah, sure," I tell her, smiling, though I'm not so sure how sincere it is. This is a lot to take in. "And then I'm hoping you're gonna go relax, 'cause I'm going to bet you're exhausted."

She sighs and consents to the idea of a bath and going to bed. I promise to look after... Damian. His name is Damian.

The kid comes in soon after, Talia with a gentle hand on his back. She gestures to the inside of my room and looks up while the kid walks in. I give her a genuine smile this time, because for a minute, I see a sparkle in her eyes, as if she's blinking back tears.

It must be hard to know your soulmate is out there without you, and it must be even harder to know your son is lost and guided down a bad path because of your own father. I pity her for a second, but then I get a good look at the kid. He's like a tiny Bruce with a hint of Talia here and there. Wow.

He looks up at me, obviously studying me with the eyes of Ra's people. I invite him onto the bed with an open hand and an inviting gaze, or my best try at them, anyway. Damian pulls himself up beside me, and I say, "So you're Bruce's blood son, huh?"

"Do you know Father?" I have so many questions but his innocence is so shocking, I can't help but let him ask me what he wants to know. "I used to live with him, yeah. Didn't you know? We're brothers."

"That is what Mother said, yes," he confirms, but when I look to where Talia was, she's gone. I shake my head. Damian goes on. "She also said you would tell me what it is like in America."

"Oh, did she? Well..."


	4. Four

Damian stays with me for around a week, give or take a day, and then Ra's steps back into the kid's life. At first, only Talia knows, but she reveals it to me after only a few hours. My job is to keep that knowledge from the kid, who's already scared of having to go back.

We're in our soft bed, Damian lying beside me, sprawled out on the pillows, when she comes in. I wake up when she shakes me, gesturing in the dark. I make out enough to rise and look at her, somewhat alert, when she starts whispering. "Jason, my father is here. I did not have time enough to formulate a large plan, so I need your help."

"Okay," I tell her, shaking the haze of sleep off. She tells me, "He is waiting downstairs. He thinks I am rousing Damian and will bring him down. I need you to sneak him out and hurry away. I do not know what direction or where you might end up."

"What about back to Gotham and Bruce? It shouldn't be too hard. I could call or something."

"I suppose so. Yes, head to your father, he can help. I will attempt to get in touch with him and inform him you are... I will try to get in touch with him to tell him about Damian and you being alive. Please stay safe for me."

"Of course. I... I'm going to miss you."

"Perhaps we may meet again."

With that, she disappears, and I'm left to protect a preteen and myself from an army of ninjas who most definitely will try to hurt or even kill us. It's my mission to make sure that they fail.

First I throw together a backpack. We must travel light, but a few outfits in an Adidas pack won't hurt us. We can change clothes once we get to a city somewhere. I also pick two books, unaware of which ones due to the dark. Finally, I put a plastic water bottle in the bag. It had been sitting on my nightstand, but I figure it won't hurt to have something to carry water in. We could quite easily need it.

Then, I wake Damian. He is reluctant to leave the bed, so I pick him up and hurry down the stairs, though the extra weight of a child makes it hard to keep my footsteps light. I manage to creep somewhat soundlessly to the back door and then I head out of it, closing it behind me.

As I sneak away I am completely unaware of my surroundings. It is a new moon, according to the starry sky that is missing the bright orb. It couldn't be harder for me to sneak, but Damian is waking up. The weight lessens with every few moments.

Eventually, he awakens enough to begin walking himself. The dawn is coming, and with it a sense of dread. We must keep moving or Ra's men will catch us, but the daylight means we will be much easier to see. Due to that, our chances of being caught increase significantly with the sunrise. I decide we are in a forest and heading north. The rising sun is on my right.

Damian is silent, probably still half-asleep and unsure of what's going on or where we are. Half of me says this is good, because in the moments he is drowsy and content he could be scared again. But the other half of me, probably the half that idolized Bruce, is saying he should know now. It pesters me until I give in, when the sun is just peeking over the trees-midmorning-and I stop to talk with the kid.

I try to keep it brief, which isn't too hard, since I don't know too much. It's enough, however, and Damian blinks up at me with wide eyes. I know Ra's wanted him to be a soldier, and almost succeeded, but this kid is just like me when I was his age. The streets didn't harden my emotions, just like Ra's didn't hamper his.

"What about Mother?" Damian questions. "And where are we headed now?"

"She'll be okay, I promise. We're just going to go to Dad now, alright? He's going to help." But as hard as I try, I can only reassure Damian as much as I can myself. I'm not entirely confident in this makeshift, messy plan.


	5. Five

We walk until the sun passes overhead and see no sign of civilization. Damian grows weary and eventually, I end up carrying him. He and I don't talk much. Staying silent will keep us from being found, I hope.

From the position of the sun, I decide it is around six o clock when I decide we're not going to get anywhere. I stop walking and whisper to Damian, "I want to stop and rest. We can keep going once the sun goes down, or maybe a little after."

"Mm. Kay." Damian's reply is muffled by my T-shirt, where his cheek rests. I set him down long enough to take our light supply bag off my back, and then I lean up against a tree. He crawls up on top of me, again putting his head on my shoulder. His breath is a reassuring heat on my neck, and soon he's asleep. I close my eyes and within moments, I too am unconscious.

I awaken to a twilight sky. The sun is vanishing and I feel mostly rejuvenated, enough so that I can continue. Damian is still deep asleep, however, so I shift him and sort through the backpack.

We have two T-shirts each. Both of mine are grey, as is one of his. The other shirt he has is black. Then, we both have two pairs of blue jeans. I also picked up a jacket for him and a sweatshirt-without a hood-for me. I don't want to draw attention by looking shady if all I want is to stay warm.

By the faint light I can see the books' titles. _The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe_ and the first _Hunger Games_. Good. I can read either one to Damian, even though the latter may be a bit PG-13. I also feel something beside the water bottle while I'm putting things away. I reach in and pull a small map out.

Nothing is marked on it, but I put it in my pocket. I would use it; save for the fact I still don't know what country we're in. Oh, well. We will find something or someone soon, and we can definitely use it then.

Our something comes just past dawn, after Damian and I have been walking east for a few hours. It is a small city and I recognize the language on the signs, even if I don't speak it. We're in India.

Damian and I walk around. "I can't speak Indian, Jason. I don't think you can, either."

"Nope. And I don't happen to have any sort of money on hand, either, so that means we're stuck sleeping outside again." I look down to the kid, stopping on the side of a small road. "But hey. We can follow these roads and get to a bigger city, and then I can call Dad, and we can get to Gotham. Does that sound okay?"

"Yes, I suppose it does."

Before we can start moving again, however, I hear a sudden noise and look around. Damian takes a step so that he is directly beside me. He trembles against me for a couple seconds before it hits me: Ra's men. They caught up to us, and we're surrounded.

Somehow my feet start moving and so do Damian's, and we start speeding down back alleys of the town. A few people glance up at us and see the ninjas pursuing us, but do nothing. I scoop Damian up and begin to push my body to go faster.

I count seven of the assassins, and I know I won't get away from them easily. I have to move faster.

I recall once Dick telling me that he hated in movies when people would get chased. They always ran straight. He told me the best way to get away if I was ever running from someone was to zigzag and try to get them caught up somehow.

I follow that advice, and it ends up saving us. Two men slip going around a corner, three more can't scale a ragged fence. The last two stumble as I break back into the woods on the far side of the town.

I set Damian down and pant, catching my breath. I look him over and decide something, which I then tell him. "We gotta travel by night, D. It'll be a little safer, at least. And I remember where we're at."

"Where is that?"

"Northeastern India. We can go through Europe and get a flight from a major airport. We'll get to Gotham even sooner than I thought."


	6. Six

It's a long trek. We spend so many days walking that I lose count. We stay near enough to the road that we can still follow its course, but far enough into the trees that we won't be seen by passerby.

Ra's men go running down the road at one point, and I have to shield little D and myself. We crouch down beside an area weathered away by time and duck almost entirely into a hole, where a tree's roots poke me. I pull Damian onto my lap and wait, shivering, until all the footsteps are long gone.

I try not to reveal to him that I am thoroughly terrified, but I know he picks up on it. Ra's has trained him to know things like this.

I'm fearful of what happened to Talia after we left. I hope, dream, pray even, that she is okay. I'm afraid of what will happen if we ever actually do get to Gotham. I've been gone much too long for things to have stayed the same. I'm scared they'll take my little brother away. He's all I've got right now, with Dad and Dick and my old friends half a world away.

Things pick up in pace. We find ourselves slipping through suburbs and sleeping beside buildings. It makes me recall my old days on the Gotham streets. Damian and I talk in the early mornings before we sleep and in the evenings before the sun is all the way down. I begin to realize he's a lot more excited to meet Bruce than I originally thought.

The suburbs start out as tiny villages, and then they progress to small towns, giving way to more technologically advanced things. I start to see cars and the occasional cell phone in use. Then, I find the payphone.

It's like a gift from the heavens. There's no coin slot and then I realize I can just call on the rotary dial. I spin the number for the manor, holding Damian's hand. A teenage kid picks up the third time it rings. "Hi! Um... Wayne Manor, Tim Drake speaking?"

I can tell he doesn't know what he's doing. Honestly, I don't know what I should do, either. "Um... is Bruce or Alfred there?"

"Sorry! They're both out right now. So is Dick. But I can take a message if you want."

"Sure." I hear a shuffling sound and the kid says, "Alright. Shoot."

"Tell Bruce or Dick that they should be expecting a call from Talia pretty soon or should have gotten one already. Also, tell Alfie that Bluejay says hello. And um... it's a payphone so good luck tracking it, but I don't doubt... Batman's skills. So yeah."

"Okay. Wait, you know? Who is this?" I let a little too much slip, I think, but how else do I let them know all that's happened?

"Just a memory, mostly."

I hang up quickly, then, I pull Damian from the street. It's getting lighter by the minute. "Come on, little D. Let's get some sleep. At least now they've got a lead."

We slip into a back alleyway, similar to the ones I spent my nights in before he saved me... Damian curls up against my chest and I wrap my arms around him loosely. The kid reminds me of myself. Needing attention like a flower needs the sunshine.

But I can't get the kid from the phone out of my head. I remember him from somewhere, and it's not vague. A strong memory but I can't place it... like we were close at one point.

It occurs to me that the kid was in the manor and answered the phone when no one else was home. That makes me realize either he was left there alone, which would never happen in Bruce's lifetime, or he... lives there now.

I've been replaced.


	7. Seven

I tremble with the realization. I've been replaced. I've... Bruce _replaced_ me. Maybe it was right of me to fear not being able to go home again. However, at this point, I have no choice but to head to Gotham. Even if I can't go home again, I need to get Damian to the safety the others can provide. The family they can give him.

Then, I hear a whisper. The kid is still awake on my chest. "Are you alright, Jason?"

"I'm fine, kid. Go to sleep."

"It was that phone call, wasn't it?"

"Okay. Yeah. It was the phone call. Can you go to sleep now?"

He sits up, still tangled in my limp, heavy arms. My hands, so unlike the ones I knew in my last life, rest on his thin shoulders. The kid's starving with only garbage cans to scratch through for food. I really need to get him a proper life, because this whole street thing isn't agreeing with him.

"Jason, I know it wasn't who you thought it would be. I could hear the voice of a teenager. Not who it was supposed to be."

"So?"

"You know more about it than you wish to tell me. Fine. I happen to know that Batman has an apprentice, a Robin, that has appeared since your death. He will end up in my life, and yours now, if Gotham is the destination."

My mind goes overtime. A new Robin... he gave the identity to the kid voluntarily, and I'm going to bet that Dick consented, too. When I became Robin, my predecessor wasn't happy he hadn't gotten a word in on the matter. Damian knew, too, which I'm guessing was his mother's-

Crashing on three sides of us pushes me to my feet. I scoop up the backpack even as the ninjas are still separating their bodies from the thick fog of shadows. I get on the street, and in the rising daylight, people are out and about. Damian keeps up, which surprises me. Last time he couldn't.

I guess the walking has made him stronger. It's toughening me up, too. I've gotten back to my lean, street kid body, but I'm older, wiser, more responsible. I have a preteen relying on me now.

I break out into the trees at the edge of the city, Damian on my heels. We don't stop for several minutes, and that's only to catch our breath. We've outrun the troops again-or simply escaped them, judging by the crowds and the loud talking. I look behind me, Damian gasping and bent over by my side.

Some form of law enforcement has restrained our pursuers. I think this cannot be better. Then, I pick up the panting kid and start moving again. "We've gotta get far from here, fast. We can't go through Europe now. Too many cities. Maybe we could get through the other way? Asia? I think it'd be hard 'cause there're many natural obstacles, but we could make it. What do you think, D?"

"Yes, Jason, that does sound like a good plan. I do know plenty of Japanese and am fluent in Mandarin. That would come in handy."

"Oh, yeah it would. Good thinking, Damian. Alright. We're going to have to keep moving all day, get as far from here as possible. One escape is accidental, due to circumstance. Twice-"

"Is our being stronger than they estimated. We will have many more enemies to look out for."

"Yep. And they'll be expecting us to go where there're cops to stop them, a saving grace for us."

Damian nods, and I set him down. By midday he is stumbling and fighting to stay conscious, so I carry him and let him get some sleep in on my shoulder. I mark my map with an arrow east from the city, which was actually titled on the paper. We've got a long way to go before we see anything big.

Nightfall hits and I decide we can both use some rest. I settle down and close my eyes, and right before I pass out, I hear Damian's little murmur as he says, "Jason, just realize that the boy has been looking out for Father in your absence. He had to put you to rest, to bury the boy he thought of as his child. If it hurt you, imagine his pain, and think that perhaps you have someone looking after your old life for you."

And I sleep with the knowledge that Bruce had to bury his child.


	8. Eight

Several sunrises and sunsets later, Damian and I arrive at a train depot. The signs are all lettered in Chinese, which I believe to be a small miracle. Damian reads them, and pulls me by the hand into a small shack, moving to the counter and talking rapidly to the man behind it. Before long, I'm yanked to a train.

The man says something to Damian, who responds with a light in his eyes. I smile, knowing by the kid's look that we're finally getting somewhere. The man pulls open a wood door and Damian asks him something, to which he replies and then gestures to the half empty car.

Damian nods, climbing up. I give the man a smile and he walks away. I look around my new surroundings. Crates line both walls and most of the floor, so we sit on a few near one wall and the door. Damian explains his conversation.

"I told him we are just trying to get home and oh, how tired and hungry we are, so pretend that is what is happening. He does not speak English. Also, he's letting us ride here because it is a shipment to the coast. We can travel much faster this way."

"Thanks, D. We're gonna be in the States before we know it."

"The train leaves in two hours, so we caught it at the right moment. I also asked the date before he left. It has been exactly six weeks since we left Mother."

It doesn't slip past me that Damian referred to it as the day "we left Mother," rather than "we started our journey" or something. His mom is first and foremost on his mind, though I'm not surprised.

Still, six weeks? It's got to have been at least a week and a half, if not two, since I made that phone call. I wonder if Bruce is looking for us. He probably got a call from Talia already. He probably knows we're out here, but I bet he started looking in Europe. If he did look at all.

Before the train takes off, the man returns. He has food for us, which we take with thank-yous and smiles. We feast on what appears to be some kind of bread and meat. I don't know or want to know what it is. I just eat.

The train takes off, us aboard, and I open the door slightly so we can watch the scenery. Beautiful nature scenes, forests and fog-tipped mountains we would have had to cross, make our next few days pretty. I close the door every night and we get back on a schedule of sleep in the moonlight, rise in the sunshine.

It stops every day, usually in the middle of the day, and we get out and search for something to eat. I regret wolfing down all the man at the station gave us, but then again, it does help to only have the backpack to worry about. Every time, we rustle in garbage containers, from cans to huge dumpsters, and then scramble to get back on the train in time.

We make it every day. I talk with Damian more now, safe from Ra's men hearing our voices. He explains that the immortal would beat and abuse him if he didn't do exactly what he was told. He always wondered if Dad would come to save him someday, which never happened, obviously. He also would worry about his mom, and if she was okay.

I tell him stories to pass the time. Those from when I was a street kid aren't too different from our lives right now, so they aren't interesting. The ones from when Bruce took me in are nice, because then he learns about his father. His favorites are my tales of being Robin though, and I have a lot to think about after that.

My least favorite topic is whether I will be Robin again. Probably not, especially with the new kid. Tim, I think his name was. I also think about what Bruce will say the first time he sees his kid. Will he get that glass look in his eyes, his fear of new people? Or will he smile and for once, have it be genuine?

What will he think of me coming home?


	9. Nine

We get to the coast after several days. I lose count again. But we're much closer to the states than we were, so I can't complain. Especially because of the plan I come up with while leaving the train.

"Little D," I say. He looks up at me and I begin. "If we take a plane out of here we'll have to get into my old bank account. Seeing as I'm legally dead that might be a problem. One flight might be our lucky shot though. One plane, from here to California."

"What will we do then, Jason? Gotham is on the other side of that country."

"I've got friends in Cali that can help. Or I did have friends. Anyway. The Titans are still standing, I asked your mom about it at one point. They can help us get across the states. We'll just get from here to San Francisco and we'll be okay."

"We are in a bay not far from Shanghai. Should that be where we take the plane from?"

"Yeah, let's do that."

And we do. It's a two day walk but we make it to the airport and then we both change into a new outfit. We had been swapping between two and saving one, but seeing as we're finally headed to the states, we can use a luxury to celebrate. I also get the pleasure of marking on the map where we've ended up.

We buy tickets from a touchscreen at a kiosk and it doesn't even deny my bank account. So far, so good.

Security checks the backpack as my carry-on, and I explain lightheartedly that I'm returning from study abroad with a young friend, and I'm so happy to finally be headed home. The guard, a black woman with a kind accent, one I recognize as southern American, laughs lightly. "I heard you'd died in a bombing, Mr. Todd."

"A rumor started by myself," I laugh. "I was a bit rebellious, if you remember?"

She seems nervous to be meeting a celebrity, even if I haven't been seen in forever and I was thought dead. We leave her for the gate, however, and soon we're waiting, first in line, to get into the plane. There are few people around and I decide to take Damian to the little café for something to eat while we wait. I guess I can use my funds a little more.

I pick out two pastries, one Damian recommends for me and one I think he should try. It looks a bit like a cinnamon roll. We nibble on our sugary delights, and then I spot the computers. A row of six or seven, all for guest use.

I get on one and send a quick email to Bruce, using the Yahoo account I did a long time ago. It says, "In Shanghai now, be home soon. Love you." I check my emails, all junk mail from right around when I died. I delete them all. Then, I click back to the news homepage, finding a headline titled, "Joker still at large" and I have to read the story.

Apparently my killer is still out there.

I have to head to the small bathroom, where I lose what little of the pastry I'd eaten and the scraps I ate since the train. I wonder numbly why the Joker was allowed to live and all of a sudden, I let one tear loose.

I haven't cried since coming back. Not even after I found out about my replacement. But now I sob in the single stall, wishing faintly for things to end up okay.

I don't really care that the Joker lived. I just have to ask myself why Bruce let him live. Damian, who followed me, whispers, "Jason, perhaps Father did not wish to break his code. I know he does not kill. Perhaps not even losing you could do that."

"No," I say. "It couldn't. Okay, I'm okay. Sorry, little D."

"Come along, the plane is boarding," he says, referring to the static announcement on the overhead. I follow the kid, using the back of my hand to swipe the tears from my cheeks. It's okay soon enough.

I let Damian have the window and I take the middle. The flight is fairly empty, so I don't end up with anyone on my other side. I find that nice, because I want to let Damian sleep and perhaps sleep some myself. There's more room now.

The only flight to the States that I could get before tomorrow was this one, which is headed for LA. We'll just have to walk to San Francisco when we get there, I guess.


	10. Ten

I sleep through the flight, waking when lights flicker ahead of us. I shake Damian, knowing we'll be there soon. I whisper, "Get up, little D. We're almost there."

We watch the skyline approach and the lights glitter below us. Soon, the plane is touching down at LAX and we're leaving. I'm too excited to think much, but I do remember the backpack and I get off without trouble. Damian and I cut through the crowds to the parking lots, where I pull him by the hand to a side exit. We leave the airport and I take the kid down a small street, usually a one-way truck entrance.

"It'll be faster to take back roads. Traffic gets horrendous here and besides, we won't be seen as much. Ra's men will have less of a trail to follow," I explain. Damian just nods, probably excited to see the new country. On the train, he had confessed that he's never been in America before.

We get deep into the city by noon. We're travelling by day, and although both of us are a little jet-lagged, we make it alright. I don't get too tired, though I do catch Damian yawning twice. I mark my map when we settle down for the night. We've gone a long way in... two months? One and a half? I don't know.

We rise in the morning, getting moving again. We follow a smaller street, which leads to the highway, according to the signs. We're near the on ramp when a car pulls over right beside us. I only panic for half of a second.

"Get in," Dick demands, opening the passenger door. I smile and get in, opening the back door for Damian. He is shocked. Dick starts to drive and I cannot express how relieved I am to not have to walk anymore.

"I can't believe you're okay. I thought Dad and Tim were making things up," my brother says. He's so happy I can't help but be happy too. "About the... Tim? He answered the phone when I called, back in India, right?"

"Oh. Yeah, I guess he did. Are you..."

"Well, I got Damian and you got him. Just something all of us have to get used to. And little D actually helped with that. When I found out I was upset and he reminded me that you guys needed someone to look after Dad. I guess that was something good, right?"

"Yeah. He's in San Fran with the Titans, so you'll get to meet him soon. And this has got to be Damian," he says, gesturing to the backseat.

"Yep. Bruce and Talia's kid," I tell him softly. He looks away from the road and at me for a second. His eyes widen and I can tell he didn't know, though about what I have to ask. "One, or both?"

"Both," he says quietly. "Bruce just said you were coming back with a kid."

"Well, yeah. He's seven, by the way. Bruce didn't know either, so don't get mad."

"Oh."

The child in question is asleep by now, after only fifteen minutes on the road. I guess he'll get what he can take. His cheek is against the window, as if he was watching the scenery. He probably was. I sigh and resign to watching the world go by myself.

Dick takes the time to fill me in on what's going on. Bruce is out trying to hunt Talia down and make sure Ra's didn't catch on and hurt her. He also wants to find the immortal, but Dick says he doesn't think he will. I don't expect him to.

He explains that we're heading to San Francisco. The plan is that the Titans will smuggle us onto a plane and send us straight to Gotham. Apparently the ninjas are much closer than I thought they were. I only have one question.

"What about the new Robin?"


	11. Eleven

We cross the Golden Gate around one am. I take a shift driving and Dick sleeps, with me glancing over every few minutes. I think a lot and decide some things.

First, that I will protect Damian. Ra's men are so close now. Secondly, I need to talk with my costumed replacement, because Dick explained that the kid idolizes me. I guess this is going to be a bit awkward, or maybe it will be cool? That might be a bit too much to hope for.

Somehow I still remember the way to the Tower. I drive down little streets to the tiny bridge, finding a gate. There's one of those monitor things that you speak into and announce yourself. It has a screen betraying the fact that Wally West is asleep on duty.

I roll the window down and press the little black button. It must make a sound on the other end, because the redhead jumps awake. "What the-"

"Hey. West. Let me in."

"Jason?!"

"The one and only."

The kid presses a button and says, "Drive straight. I'll be down and in costume."

"Sure," I say, easing the car through the opening black gates. I can't help but think, as they close in the rearview, that I'm never going back. Not that I want to, but still.

Kid Flash appears out of nowhere, pointing to a little driveway. I maneuver down it and see an open garage. The speedster gestures toward the black hole. I follow commands and park between new and old vehicles of many shapes and sizes. Then, I get out and Wally shakes Dick roughly.

"Get uh-huh-up, man! Come on!"

"Wha?" He blinks wildly and then realizes where he is. He shakes off the sleep and gets out of the car. I open the back door and look over Damian. He's still unconscious, which somewhat worries me, because he's been out since Dick and I started chatting back in LA.

I unbuckle the seatbelt that the kid is straining against and I pull him out of the car. The movement rouses him and my worry dissolves. "Hey, little D. You feeling okay?"

"I suppose so," he mutters, shaking the sleep off. "Where are we?"

"Titans' Tower. San Francisco."

"What are we doing next?"

The question catches me off guard. For once, Damian notices. "It is alright if you do not know. I imagine that... Dick, I imagine he knows what will occur after this."

"I bet he does. Come on, let's get inside. I wonder if there's something we can eat?"

The next little while is frantic. I freak out quite a few of my old friends, up to and including Donna Troy, who has a lengthy conversation with me. She's the only one who explains the situation to me, though it might be that most of the others don't know.

"Well, Bruce got a call from someone about fifteen days before you called, which was around a month and a half ago." The former Wonder Girl tells me with in-depth details. "Diana-now, don't take this as totally solid information, I don't know who she heard it from-but Diana said he had been hunting Ra's men, or Ra's himself, up until he got your email. Three days ago, when he received said email, the Batman left Gotham in the care of three teenage girls and a teenage boy. If that explains his desperation."

"Who did he leave in the city?" I ask curiously. Dick took Damian to meet some of the Titans and since the kid asked, to get everything mostly settled so we have a plan for at least the immediate future. Donna and I are alone now due to that fact.

"Batgirl, um... I think she was Spoiler when you died. She might've... No. She was Spoiler until you died and Tim took over right after and she changed. Yeah. And then Cassandra Cain, who he totally stole from Ra's. She's a ninja if I ever saw one. And Babs, I know you know her. And then Tim."

"Why am I always last?"


	12. Twelve

"Why am I always last?"

I look up to see a kid in a Robin costume. His mask is pulled off, rolled into a tube shape in his right hand, and he has messy black makeup in lopsided circles around his eyes. I recognized his voice from the phone call that shook me, but upon seeing him I remember him from before.

Those socialite parties Bruce dragged me into were a complete disaster, until I realized I was not alone. There were other kids, from other rich parents, that I could play on a game system with. Most notably was Timothy Drake, son of the late Janet Drake and the semi-drunken Jack Drake.

He and I were close before I died. Actually, I considered him my best friend outside of the superhero world. We were highly close. He even guessed once that Bruce was Batman, and my not denying it must have been proof enough for him.

The messy dots have connected. After I died, he came to Bruce and knew. It must have been my fault. And then he became Robin, probably because Bruce needed someone, like Damian reminded me of back in India. So Tim Drake is Robin, I can live with that.

And apparently his "idolizing" me, as Dick put it, was just my old friend trying to talk about me without letting the former Robin know our past. One of my problems down, too many more to go.

"You're last 'cause you're littlest. Get over yourself."

"I don't find that fair, and you know that."

I nod to the kid. The age gap between us seems so wide now, as he still looks ten, or maybe eleven, like the last time I saw him. Now I have a white streak racing through my hair and a tired body from too much travel. We are, in all actuality, less than three years apart, but we look more like a young adult and a tween.

He nods back, mouthing "later," and I know he wants to settle things. I let it drop for now. Donna notices nothing, still chattering about her list of Gotham's protectors and its order. I allow them to converse over what is really fair in the listing of names and how perhaps age doesn't truly matter. I finish my small snack and slip off to find Dick and Damian. It's not too terribly hard.

Damian is on Dick's lap, already comfortable with his older "brother." Wally, Raven, Speedy, and Superboy are talking with them. They're reviewing a plan, which I note as I draw closer. Raven is saying, "All you've gotta do is get on that flight, Wing. It's already secure with who the passengers are in first class. Besides, you will be in your civilian identities. I'm sure you could persuade them to do an extra check for you."

"That's true. And the backup..." Dick says. Damian climbs down from his spot to me, where I lift him off the ground gently. Speedy responds to my elder, "Will be waiting. You should get going right around now, guys."

"Yeah, you're right. Kon, if you would please go find my Robin for me, thank you. And Speedy, if you would make that call to your boss before we leave, it would be highly appreciated. I would just love knowing they know we're coming."

The two heroes head off, and Raven departs on her own. Kid whispers something to Nightwing and the older man replies in an equally soft tone. I wait patiently until the speedster leaves, and then I walk over to the man, still holding Damian on my hip. "So what're we doing? Plane with nice security and then going to visit GA is what I'm picking up."

"You're right," he says, ruffling Damian's hair. The kid smiles a little. "We're headed to Star City with one transfer, which is in Kansas City, since both of Metropolis's stars are at home base for the next few days. They can bail us out if anything happens on the trip. That's our backup."

Tim arrives. His mask is back on and he has a small bag in one hand and an overstuffed duffel in the other. He hands the former to Dick and lifts the latter on his shoulder. I sigh, hand Damian to Dick, and take the heavy bag. "You're gonna hurt yourself, little bird."

He smiles. "You remember that?"

"I remember everything."

"I'm confused." That would be Dick.

"We used to be friends," I explain quickly. "Used to hang at socialite parties and all that junk."

"What's a so-she-uh-light party?" Damian this time.

"Where they dress kids up in tight suits and expect us to behave. Ha." Tim laughs in a sarcastic, fake way. I nod. "True story, little D. As soon as we get you to Gotham I'm positive someone will make you go. Probably gonna be me."


	13. Thirteen

We get into the San Francisco airport around half an hour later. By then, Tim and I have explained, in a much more detailed way, our adventures. And then Dick has to point out that we're brothers now.

I'm content for a while. The plane has seats in rows of two by the window and three in the center, so Tim and Damian sit by windows, the latter behind the former. I sit beside the younger one, since Dick and I decided he's more used to me, and Dick settles beside the older of my little brothers.

Our plane takes off around two hours after we leave the tower. By the time we reach Colorado, it's been long enough that I've fallen asleep and so has Damian. Dick shakes me at one point and I sit straight up, waking instantly. "Shh, listen."

A crackling announcement is repeating over and over on the system, and somehow the younger boys are sleeping through it. I'm instantly glad for it. "We will be making an emergency landing in Austin, Texas, due to security concerns. Do not panic. Please return to your seats and fasten your seatbelts. We will..."

"They found us," I whisper, frantic, looking to Damian. He's asleep, his cheek touching the glass lightly and his eyes closed loosely. He sleeps so light with a panic in his eyes when he wakes, I don't want to rouse him. Dick pulls me from my fear with a gentle touch.

"Calm down, okay? If someone sees you freaking they'll think you're the problem. And I don't want either of them getting afraid."

"You're right. Okay. What do we do?"

"Just get off the plane. We can figure something out from that airport. Probably get to Kansas somehow and catch our backup ride there."

"What if-"

Before I can express my fear that we won't be able to leave that airport, or alive and with all of our pieces put together anyway, a flight attendant comes by. She makes Dick sit down and strap in, so I have to settle for deep breaths and focusing intently on anything but thinking.

We land and I wake Damian up. He gets up with a haunted look in the back of his deep, mournful eyes, so I ask what's wrong as we leave the plane. He shrugs. "I do not know. Perhaps I just experienced a nightmare that is already forgotten?"

"Maybe. Keep up, okay? Don't want you getting lost on me, now."

We regroup a little bit away from anyone else. Dick and I whisper a plan and end up ushering the others to a cab, where we are driven to a McDonalds.

"Gotta let you experience real American food here, Dami," Dick says brightly. With all four of us crammed into the bench that might seat three if they weren't muscular, lean men, it's tight. The youngest is on my lap, leaning over Tim in the middle, and Dick by the opposite window. Dick and I are both pressed to the doors, and Tim is trying to be as small as possible, but we're still in full contact with one another.

It goes without saying that the duffel in Tim's lap is making things even harder.

I'm immensely relieved when we get to our stop, untangle from one another, and stretch out. We relax at a long counter in the center of the restaurant, waiting for our food to come. Tim and Damian both get Happy Meals, which I find hilarious for a reason I cannot place. Maybe it's my thinking of both trying-and probably succeeding, in D's case-to fight crime and kill a dangerous enemy, and then they're enjoying chicken nuggets in bright red boxes.

Dick holds up his cup. "A toast?"

"Alright," Tim says, raising his. I lift mine and gesture for Damian to pick his plastic chocolate milk jug up. "A toast," I say, "to little D and I making it home, almost."

"And to survival, for all four of us," Dick points out. Dami puts in, "I suppose it would be fitting to also add that we are halfway across the States already."

"And of course to old friends," Tim finalizes, and we drink. I smile. "We have conquered! Survived! Journeyed! Reunited! If Bruce is not proud of us now I am renouncing my relations to him."

"I second that motion," my old friend murmurs. Dick nods, mouth full, and Damian sighs. "I cannot do so, for I am blood."

"True," I tell him. "But I can kidnap you, and leave no traces."

Dick and I laugh, and the current Robin looks mortified. The Wayne descendant merely appears confused.

After that, Tim hurries to finish, and then I realize that he wants to get to the empty Play place. I ask if he's going to take Damian.

"Oh, yeah! Of course I will," he responds. The kid in question asks, "What is it that you do in a... _Play place_?"

"You play, duh. Come on."


	14. Fourteen

A few hours later, when sunset is rapidly approaching and I've lost sense of the actual time, we're in a rental car. Damian is sporting a bruise from slipping down part of the Play place's tunnels, and he, along with the other young boy, is asleep in the back of the car. We plan to only drive it as far as we need to. I have no doubt that we're going to be tracked with it.

Dick is driving. We plan to go as far as he can manage, heading on a freeway that heads northeast. Towards Kansas for a backup, but if we decide we don't need it we'll head toward our original destination. Star City, USA, where Green Arrow, Artemis, and salvation await.

Dick called both the Kent farm and the Queen estate, to tell them what happened. Kara, upon picking up the phone, offered to pick us up, but Dick reminded her that it would draw too much attention to the spot, and in turn, to her. We're going to drive.

It's a northward journey. Around one or two am, Dick decides to swap with me. We make a stop at a rest area somewhere in western Oklahoma and I get behind the wheel. Soon, my only conscious companion joins the others in dreaming.

I get us into Kansas, and by dawn we're near to the Kent property. Dick awakens, and we begin discussing our options when they attack.

Eight ninjas. I stop the car, and they rip the passenger door open. I leap out, armed with fists and a vengeance, and Dick rushes to get to Tim's oversized bag. Its contents? Weaponry.

The two young boys wake in the middle of the fight, not that I am surprised, but I know they realize why the plane had to land. Why we made our detour and tried, so hard, to avoid the subject. Even when they start fighting alongside us, it appears that we're going to be defeated. I guess four boys are no match for trained assassins. Especially if one isn't even in double digits yet and half-starved from weeks on the streets, with the latter disaster affecting a second boy as well.

Our saviors come in their red-caped, blue-suited glory, when we start to fail. First I see her blonde hair, new blue outfit, and bold fight taking out two of the enemies without a struggle. Then, I see Superman himself, forcing a few of the others to the ground. It takes mere minutes for them to succeed.

Damian is awestruck even after I whisper "superpowers." Dick and Tim start thanking them instantly, and my little companion leaps behind the eldest Robin to avoid their eyes. Kara shakes my hand, a smile on her face, and says. "We could hear you fighting it out. Thought we'd make sure you were okay and offer help. Looks like we did okay, hmm?"

"You're like gods," I tell her. "Thanks."

"It was nothing. Oh, this must be Damian," she says brightly, noticing the mostly hidden preteen. I introduce them. Soon after, we're on the Kents' front porch, enjoying some of the famous Martha Kent apple pie, and discussing options.

Well, most of us are discussing options, anyway. Damian's begging for, and receiving, a second slice of pie.

It's not a long stop, but we do spend most of the day on the farm. Damian falls in love with the cat and Dick promises to ask Bruce for one when we get home. I make a mental note to pitch in on that argument.

After dinner, we drop the rental car at a local place and the Supers take us to our new form of transportation: a cargo train. We've been cleared to hitch a ride, and it's been kept a secret between Superman and the train company owner. We can get to a second safe haven in Keystone and Central cities, where Flash and Impulse are waiting.

I think we're gonna be okay.


	15. Fifteen

I wake up before dawn the next day. The train has stopped, and I study signs that I can see without leaving the train. I wouldn't want to be left behind, would I? I decide there are two more stops before we can get off.

Damian is curled up beside Dick. He's dreaming, or so I deduce by the flicker of his closed eyes in the moonlight. I hope he will sleep peacefully tonight, without nightmares, because I need him to rest. If we get into another fight we'll need everyone to help. I can't bank on rescue, especially if it puts my brothers on the line.

Tim is on Dick's other side. I know my elder always wanted to be a big brother, and I did fulfill that wish once. But with Tim to baby, I've lost my role. Not to mention Damian.

I feel so out of place here. Dick is, of course, ready to welcome me home. But Tim's adjusted to having my roles as the younger of two, and honestly, I'm not too happy with coming back to him here either. And Damian's just trying to get comfortable in an entirely new world. I just hope things all end up alright for all four of us.

It's sunrise when we leave the train. We slip into crowds, as discreet as possible, and vanish into a busy city. Dick follows streets he's obviously walked before with Tim at his heels. The teen is still clutching that duffel.

I take Damian's hand tightly and weave my way through the hordes of people. It's too fast-moving for me here, and I've lived in the heart of Gotham. I wonder how I ever did that.

An apartment building proves to be our destination. Dick walks into the lobby and asks for Iris and Barry Allen. I pick Damian up when he complains that his feet hurt, and Tim takes my hand while the youngest is on my hip. Dick leads us to an elevator, and hefts Tim onto his shoulders.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't think he was meant to be a big brother.

We get to the apartment and are greeted by a whirlwind of red hair known as Bart Allen. He drags Tim off, and the huge bag is dropped in the doorway. Dick picks it up and sets it beside the couch, where Iris gestures to. Then she takes control, sending Damian to take a "warm bath, because you look like you need it, poor little thing."

Then she offers to let Dick get some sleep in her and Barry's room, and he disappears. I am fed another good meal, like the one I had at the Kents. I thank Iris repeatedly.

She tells me it's nothing. "Best we can all do, we're gonna do. Your dad's given Barry a lot of help, heaven only knows how much he's invested in Clark. We're gonna pay him back by getting you all back to him. Barry and I can only take you for a little while, since we know there's somebody on your tails, so Ollie and Artemis are coming to get you."

This doesn't surprise me. I confirm her thought, that we are being chased, by reminding her who Damian is. "Yeah. Ra's has a bunch of people following us to get Damian. He's Talia and Bruce's kid, so Ra's decided that the kid belongs to him."

"Do you mind me asking why? I mean, Talia, the enemy's daughter?"

"Yup," I say, nodding. "They had a fling a while back. She's still into him but I think he's over her by now. Damian... Dami's just caught in the crossfire of their little war."

It's not long after that Ollie and Artemis arrive. We're loaded into the back of an SUV, an inconspicuous white one, and driven to the airport. A jet awaits us there, one of the Wayne ones, and I curl up by a window. Damian's sitting on Dick's lap while he explains something to Ollie. Tim and Artemis are discussing current events within the Titans.

I get a quite absentminded and I let go of my senses for a bit. After how fast things have been moving, just to keep the four of us out of trouble, I'm too tired to function. I miss home, or at least how it used to be. I vaguely hear Dick say something, but I can't focus. My own name, I recognize, but everything else sounds like it's underwater.

All of a sudden, I'm getting sick. Whatever's going on is beyond me by now. I can't bring myself to focus anymore.

My eyesight is fuzzy, a haze at best. Everything sounds like something between static and rushing water. I can taste fire from the puke and I keep convulsing. Nothing stays down. I can't feel anything.


	16. Sixteen

I'm on fire when I wake. Not literally, of course, but my throat burns and my whole body aches. It takes me quite a while to register my surroundings.

It's my old room. The thick cloth curtains are drawn, but the window is open. They blow out and relax with each puff of wind. It's dark out, and my silver clock reads somewhere between nine forty-five and ten pm.

It's frighteningly quiet. I wonder if I'm in a realistic dream until I try the pinch test. Nope. Reality has finally returned me home. I decide that the quiet is just everyone out on patrol.

Dick's probably back out in the field, and I'm going to guess that Tim went with. Babs might be out, but Dick explained to me what happened to her while I was gone. She's paralyzed, by the same force that brought me down.

Back in San Francisco, Donna mentioned that there were two new girls. One who used to be Spoiler is Batgirl now, so Babs definitely isn't in that spot. And the ninja girl Cassandra who was once Ra's, if I can remember right. My new sisters.

I wonder if Bruce came home when we did. If so, I hope he's met Damian. He needs to get to know his blood child and he needs to get close to the kid. All Damian ever asked me about, back in that old mansion, was his Father.

Speaking of the little devil, the kid is now in my room. "Jason? Are you awake?"

My own voice frightens me. It crackles so bad that I can't make out words. But I cough a little and sit up. "Yeah. You alright, little D?"

"Yes. Father must go out on patrol, so he sent me up to check on you."

Well, there's two of my problems solved.

"I'm alright. You wanna go to sleep or wait up for him?"

"May I stay up so late? Mother would never allow me to do that."

"Oh, Dami. Of course you can stay up! I'd never ask you to sleep while everyone's on patrol. But you need to fill me in. How long was I out for?"

"A day and then some. We have been here for a few hours, and Father picked us up from the... Arrows. You collapsed on the plane and were sick, so he rushed to you rather than us flying out here."

"Alright. Are you settling in here okay?"

"Yes. I have my own room now, and our brothers have helped me when I need it. The girls are also kind to me."

"That's good. I haven't met them yet, except for Barbara."

"You will like Cass. She and I met a few times in Grandfather's training facilities. She has fair training and works as Black Bat. Stephanie is a brat but Tim likes her, so we must put up with her. She is currently Batgirl. Barbara works as Oracle. I watched her work last night because Father was getting you settled. She is quite talented."

"Isn't she? We were really close before I died. Dick liked her a lot. We all thought they were going to get married before he got her the papers to be adopted. She turned into the big sister really quickly."

"Father told me to stay with her while he took you upstairs. She looked at me and said, 'You're a cute kid. You wanna come up on my lap or something?' I did so, and I watched her work. I do not know why someone so kind must suffer such a disability. She deserves the ability to walk again."

"I know," I say, leaning against the wall. I sigh and get up, stretching. "Let me see what I can get dressed in. I might raid Dick's stuff. Then we can go downstairs."

"Tim said you might read to me if you were awake. Would you?"

"Sure I will. I might even make something to eat too."

"Like what?"

"Well, I'd have to take a look at what there is. If there's ingredients enough, we might be able to make milkshakes."

"What is that?"

"Oh, Dami, you have so much to learn."


	17. Seventeen

When I finally get downstairs, dressed in Dick's clothes, I find both frozen and fresh strawberries. Alfred appears in the kitchen, offering assistance, and I have to embrace him for a minute. I accept his help and we get together enough strawberry milkshakes to give some to everybody when they get back.

Alfred also tells me everything I need to be prepared for. Bruce has changed due to my death and Babs's injuries, but he's the least of my worries. I have two girls I'll have to get used to, since they're both living in the manor. And my new brothers, of course, though that's a work in progress already.

Damian falls asleep at the kitchen counter, so I lay him down one room away, in the den. The couch is close enough that someone will hear if he needs it. The kid's home with his family now, and I can rest a little easier. He and I are finally safe from Ra's world.

I decide to go down to the cave and greet Babs before the others return. There'll be a small party, with the milkshakes and everyone finally together. I bet Bruce is having the time of his life knowing all the kids he chose, once upon a time, are all home.

She shocks me. Her hair is still red, her lipstick still pink, her skin still a bit paler than she'd like. But she's stuck in a chair, like everyone said, and she's on a computer. I watch her from the shadows for a minute.

"Wing, I'm sending Black Bat your cycle. She's got a few wounds I want tended and she's a bit out of range for you guys to pick her up." Barbara says. "Batman, finish up there, and then I think we can wrap up with a sweep of the Arkham area... Of course, but I think we ought to give it a check. You never know with Harvey."

There's a pause and then she presses a button. "Here. Let me link the calls in through the cave, since you all have something to say."

Tim's voice, laced with static, hits first, followed by a chorus of bat names. "Robin, online. Black Bat, online. Nightwing, online..."

"Alright. Robin, first." Barbara says. He starts talking. "I want to follow somebody and catch a ride home. I've got one grapping hook left and I don't think I can make it."

"Bats, could you pick him up on your way?"

"Of course. That would also remedy my need for help."

"Alright, let's do that. Black Bat, what's on your mind?"

"I'm going to head home now. There's a bit too much blood for my liking."

"See you soon, then."

She fixes everyone's little problems with quick ideas, and I realize her big sister role has become her identity of Oracle, or so they call her. Then, Black Bat arrives, and she works to keep everyone on the radio while checking over the black haired girl's wounds. I step into the light then, and ask if I could be of assistance. She gives me the biggest smile I have ever seen and gestures to Cassandra. "Get her all sewn up, alright? Thank you."

I lead her to the med bay area, which I passed coming downstairs. Still in the same spot. I get supplies and then a good look at the teenage girl. Her raven hair is short, not even shoulder length, and she's of some Asian descent. I can see David Cain in her features.

I introduce myself properly, and she smiles softly. "I'm Cass. I guess I'm your sister..."

"I heard so. Here, let me." I pull the Kevlar off of her chest. There's a layer of black underneath, which is mutilated across her back. I tear it until I can clean and bandage her wound, which I do, and then the others start getting back. I give Tim some stitches on his forehead and an icepack for a bump he received to the wrist. Then I help Dick out with some of his cuts, and slowly, we all get upstairs to where the milkshakes await. Everyone is surprised.

It's a relaxing evening. Damian wakes up and ends up in Barbie's lap at the table. Right now, with everyone laughing and smiling, I feel very safe. There might still be ninjas after me, and there might not. I might still have a lot of problems with my siblings, and with all I left behind when I died, but I'm alright for now.


End file.
